How Can You Become the Ideal Executive Candidate?

How Can You Become the Ideal Executive Candidate?

Job hunting is not fun, and the whole experience can feel overwhelming, haphazard, unfriendly, and like a great big time-suck! The resulting frustration, confusion, and disappointment can drain our energy, making the search harder and harder.

Clarify Your Direction

Over time our job searches often lose direction and clarity. We apply for anything, everywhere. Just like companies often lack laser-focus on their ideal customer, job seekers often lack a laser-focus on their ideal company and position.

Ideal customer (target client) - the intersection where what customers want most meets what you do best.

Ideal role (target company) - the intersection where what companies want most meets what you do best.

Companies cannot successfully be all things to all people and neither can you!

Become an Ideal Executive Candidate

• Maintain your mental health and key social support

  • Identify your champions and confidants

• Develop a road map for your end-to-end focused pursuit

  • Prepare weekly action plans to maximize your efforts, make progress, and get faster results

• Maintain a system for next steps

  • Track your efforts and stay on top of follow-ups

• Regularly reflect and review

  • What is working, what you are learning, how you can improve

Get Clear on Your Direction

• Envision what is next for your career

  • If you are not clear what you are looking for, no one else will be either.

  • It is easier to find something when you know what you are looking for; and it is easier for others to spot opportunities for you.

  • Understand your dreams and aspirations, strengths and opportunities

• How will your new role make you feel?

  I just heard a few of you groan when I mentioned feelings. When I went through this exercise several years ago, I discovered I wanted to feel FREE. I wanted the FREEDOM to do what I do best, the way that I do it best.

Magnetize Your Executive Resume, Bio and Social Profiles

• Know your brand and your unique value proposition

  • Highlight what makes you different, just as you would highlight a company’s secret sauce (why a customer would want to work with you specifically)

• Understand your target audience

  • This comes back to being clear on target roles and ideal companies

• Use their language and test your messaging

  • Before I launched my latest book, I had several people read it including my dad. He was a successful executive in the non-profit world and retired 15 years ago. I knew he’d catch the insider lingo that I take for granted and assume makes senses to everyone.

• Master your personal elevator pitch

  • Incorporate your brand and unique value proposition

  • If you do not get a bit energized when you say your pitch out loud, it is not the pitch for you!!

    Trust me! I speak from my own personal experience and the experiences of all the executives I’ve coached. The pitch may look perfect on paper (buzzwords and all). You will know when it’s YOURS; your elevator pitch will encapsulate what makes you uniquely talented and effective. It will resonate with those you’re looking to connect with.

• Practice, practice, practice

• Design your resume, 1-page bio and social profiles in alignment with your brand and your target audience

  • Make them action and accomplishment-oriented

  • Highlight measurable impact and get specific

  • This is nearly always one of the two most difficult aspects of beginning a successful job search (elevator pitch being the other one)

Find and Land Your Dream Job

• Proactively request informational interviews and uncover hidden (never posted) opportunities

• Network with intention

  • I am not a fan of small talk and mingling. I run out of energy quickly when I try. I do much better when interactions are purposeful! Networking interactions should be purposeful; spend the time to get clear on the purpose and your intention for each event or interaction.

• There are introvert friendly ways!

• Prioritize networking opportunities and focus on quality over quantity

• Clarify your purpose and specific goals for each event or interaction

• Find key connections in their natural habitat

  • This can feel daunting with in person events on hold; in reality there are better avenues to find the right people to connect with

• Prep, prep, prep

  • Understand the industry and the company. Listen.

  • As you listen, you’ll notice opportunities to speak about your experience related to their company challenges

• Demonstrate your value early and often throughout the entire Find it and Land it process!

It’s easy to lose confidence and convince yourself there are no opportunities for you especially during COVID. It may not be easy, but there is a dream job for you. With a focused plan and support, you will discover it.

If you’re looking for a boost to jump start your job search, schedule time for a complimentary resume or LinkedIn profile review. We’ll uncover opportunities to Magnetize your executive resume or LinkedIn profile.

Our goal for this call is to provide YOU with value. No selling; that’s a promise.